Oakland Raiders Transcript Head Coach Jack Del Rio Opening statement: “Always good to get started and get out there with the rookie class and host the tryout players that are here for the weekend. Looking for them to make a good impression, make a case for themselves as to why we should have them going forward with us as we put together our football team. A lot of eagerness, a lot of nervous energy out there. When you’re talking about rookies making the team, whether they’re drafted or undrafted, having an impact on special teams is important. Understanding how we do things and what it looks like to be here and be respectful of each other, come in here and be a great teammate. All the things I talk about with everybody that comes in here. Again, a nice start with them. We had the one unfortunate incident at the end of practice where the young man in a non-contact drill went down. Hopefully we get good news from that. Other than that, good start to the weekend. Got a couple more good days in front of us.” Q: What have your first impressions been of Connor Cook? Coach Del Rio: “I think he’s been outstanding. He comes in, had a tremendous career and is very humble. Obviously he is intelligent. He asks good questions. He’s got arm talent. It’s a matter of getting familiar of what we do and how we do it. Great start for his first week of being here. Having him throughout the week in meetings and then today getting a lit bit of work with some of the younger guys that are here with us this weekend, I think he’s off to a great start.” Q: Do you guys like to flood them with information over the first few days to see how they react to it? Coach Del Rio: “Not just to study how they react to it, but to help them hear it. The more you hear it, the more often you hear it and go over it and the detail of it, the better chance you have to really understand it and get a great understanding of it so you can apply it and be able to perform at a high level. The great thing about Connor is that he’s very bright. He gets it and it makes sense to him. That’s a great place to start.” Q: Even though Karl Joseph can’t be on the field, is it beneficial for him to be here this weekend? Coach Del Rio: “Yes, and the whole week. We got him here as quickly as we could, with all the rookies and Karl in particular. The meetings that he’s involved in, we’re still able to walk it and talk it so we’re doing some of that. All of the players that are mending will continue to work hard and do the things that they’re able to do with [Head Strength and Conditioning Coach] Joe [Gomes] and with [Head Athletic Trainer] Rod [Martin] to get themselves back. It’s definitely valuable time to have. We don’t get enough time with these guys and we’ve got to maximize the time we do get and be really efficient with it.” Q: I know with Jihad Ward, there were reports that he might need to have his knee looked at again. Obviously he was out there today... Coach Del Rio: “He looked pretty good, right? Don’t trust all those reports out there. We felt pretty good about our reports. He looks terrific. He’s very athletic. I think you get a chance to talk to him today and you’ll find he’s a little bit like Amari [Cooper]. A little soft-spoken… Maybe not quite as much. He’s a serious guy and an intelligent guy. He’s got very good athletic ability and we’re excited to have him.” Q: Mario Edwards Jr. announced that he had been given final clearance. What are your thoughts on that? Coach Del Rio: “My philosophy on talking about guys that are injured is really not to. I love the way our team is working. I love having Mario be a part of that team that’s working hard. He’s a really good football player. We just don’t get into discussions about injured guys this time of year.” Q: When you guys go 11-on-11, these guys are all strangers and it’s all new. How much can you really take away from that? Coach Del Rio: “You get an evaluation on everything that goes on this weekend. How fast some guys can pick it up, whether it’s 11-on-11 or in a ‘skelly’ drill or in a run drill or in individual work. It’s all being evaluated. You get a feel for them. The interaction that we have with them, with some of the guys that have been here, the draft picks and 5.13.16 Oakland Raiders Transcript some of the free agents that were signed, have more time to make an impression. Some of the tryout guys have a shorter window, but we’re evaluating everything.” Q: What does it say about the evaluating process of the Raiders that you would put so much faith in an undrafted guy? Coach Del Rio: “When you get into undrafted guys, you’re really tapping into the scouts. Those are the guys that bring those names to you at the end of the draft. They’re fighting for their guys that they believe in. That’s when the scouts shine. From a coaching standpoint, anybody that we get, we’re going to love them up, we’re going to work to develop them and we’re going to give them a chance to compete. We’ll then evaluate them from there. As an organization, we’re very open to the idea of giving guys an opportunity and seeing what they’re about.” Q: Do you think some of the undrafted guys that are out there today see that philosophy and want to come here more? Coach Del Rio: “I do. I think it’s a positive thing. I think agents understand that when they’re dealing with us, that that is the case.” Q: Are there any qualities that stand out the most when you’re looking at these undrafted guys? Coach Del Rio: “No. Things like grit. We want to add tough-minded people to our organization. Guys that are hungry and that love football, that would be one. You’re always looking for size and speed and talent and things like that. Some guys maybe don’t get drafted but have that grit and they’re going to give it all they have. Some of those guys continue to develop and maybe, for whatever reason, didn’t get the opportunities that some others did during their collegiate career. Then they get here and they take off. We’re open-minded. Anybody that comes in with us, we’re going to give them a thorough evaluation and a good, solid look.” Q: Does it take a while to see that grit? Or does it jump out at you? Coach Del Rio: “It can jump out at you. Where we get that grade is from our scouts that are with their people. Then we know that this isn’t an impression just for the weekend but it’s also what we know he’s about, what he’s been about. That’s why the scouts really fight for guys that come in and get signed as undrafted, because those are guys they felt maybe should have been drafted that they’d love to have here.” Q: Damontre Moore has been signed since the last time we talked to you. What do you like about him and are there any concerns about off-the-field things with him? Coach Del Rio: “First the part of adding him, he’s a guy that a couple of years ago when he came out of Texas A&M, I was familiar with. I think he’s got some of the length and athleticism and natural pass rush ability that we covet. In terms of the other things, some of the off-the-field issues or in the locker room issues or any of that kind of stuff, we feel good about being able to bring the best out of a young man like this. Don’t really, in our opinion, see a huge downside. Guys have disagreements in the locker room. I was in a lot of locker rooms. I had a few myself, and it didn’t make me a bad guy. That can get overblown a little bit, in fairness to him. For us, the way I look at it and the way I talked to him about it, is that it’s a fresh start for him. Coming in here, be yourself, have fun, commit to being everything you can be, give us everything you have. If he does that, we think he has enough talent to be here. We’ll see how it works out for him. He’s the kind of guy that you pull for. Things haven’t really started the way they probably could have, but that doesn’t matter. For us, it’s an opportunity. For him, it’s an opportunity. It’s all about moving forward.” Q: Do you think Amari Cooper is ready to take the next step in Year 2? Coach Del Rio: “I think for everybody, ‘Coop’ as well, it’s all about growth, maturity and taking that step forward.